Second Chances
by Ariana Raven
Summary: Robin Goodfellow has just had his heart broken. The faery prankster isn't one to sit around moping, however, so he decides to pull a few pranks on an old friend while he gets over it-but Puck gets more than he bargained for when he runs into a couple of half-breeds who've just lost a fight with an angry dragon, leaving only one of them alive... (Puck x OC, rated T to be safe.)
1. Chapter 1: Letting Go

Chapter 1: Letting Go

_Puck_

Every instinct I have is screaming for me not to do this, not to leave.

Every fiber of my being is aching to stay, to find Meghan and be by her side, even though it's not possible, even though I just went to the ends of the earth so she could be happy with someone else—and not just anyone, but a faery who has been by turns my closest friend and bitterest enemy—even though she's living in the middle of the freaking Iron Kingdom, where no Summer fey can survive without a human soul. Because who am I, if I'm not her faithful Puck, her best friend, her confidant, the jester who makes her smile and the one person whose shoulder has always been there for her to cry on?

_But she doesn't need you anymore, _I remind myself harshly. _She has Ash. Will you make Ariella's sacrifice for nothing? Will you hurt Meghan all over again just to say goodbye?_

I know the answer to these questions, no matter that it's not one I want to accept. And if I'm one thing, it's a good actor—I don't really have a choice, considering I'm both the most famous trickster in history and a creature who can't technically lie. So I have to find ways of telling people only what I want them to hear, while making sure that it's still the truth. I reach deep inside myself for that old careless grin and let it spread over my face, allowing just a hint of wistfulness to find its way into my expression while I go through with my plan, so I won't set old ice-boy on guard. He does know me pretty well, after all, so it's harder to pull the wool over his eyes than most people's.

"Well, here we are," I sigh, breaking the silence that's settled since we reached the edge of the Iron Realm. "Home sweet home for you, ice-boy, as strange as it is to think about that. Sure you can make it to Mag Tuiredh on your own? I don't really know where it's located from here."

"It doesn't matter. I'll find it," Ash replies absently, staring out into the forest of steel trees that separates me forever from—but I'm not letting myself think about that.

I cross my arms casually as I inform him, "Yeah, I've no doubt you will. Anyway, you probably won't see me for a while, ice-boy. The thought of returning to Summer just isn't as appealing as it once was." This, like everything else I say, is completely the truth: the last thing I want to do is to return to my old court alone, back to life the way it was before this year's shenanigans, like Meghan never even existed, like I hadn't fallen in love with her. Like she hadn't been the one and only girl to ever come close to breaking Robin Goodfellow's heart.

"Maybe it's time for a road trip," I continue, flinging my arms wide in a dramatic, carefree gesture. "The wind in my face, the open road stretching out before me, excitement and adventure just around the next bend."

"Huh. Oberon didn't give you permission to go tromping through the Deep Wyld with me, did he?" the Winter Prince muses, giving me a piercing stare. Most fey would have shifted under that gaze, but I'm not most fey, so Ash has never intimidated me, much to his chagrin. Maybe because I used to be the only one—besides Ariella—who knew that he actually had a heart beneath that frozen exterior. But now that shield has begun to drop, further and further until I barely recognize him as the cold and ruthless son of Mab. Meghan changed him, just as she did me.

"Not so much," I grimace in response to his question. "Anyway, I think it's time for a vacation, let Lord Pointy Ears cool down a bit. Give Meghan a hug for me, will ya? Maybe I'll see you both in a few decades."

"Where are you going?"

"Who knows," I shrug, unsure of the answer myself. "Maybe I'll try to find the End of the World again. Maybe I'll travel the mortal realm for a while. It really doesn't matter where I go, or where I end up. There's a whole huge world out there, and it's high time for us to get reacquainted. I'm glad we had one last little adventure, ice-boy, but it's time for me to strike out on my own. Try not to have too much fun without me, okay?"

I'm about to leave right then, but he stops me. "Puck," Ash says, holding out his hand. I give him a little smirk as I take it, but then that smirk accidentally turns into a real grin, an honest, serious one. No matter how jealous of him I am, how fun he is to annoy, or how much I miss my princess, I'll always have a soft spot for the Unseelie prince.

"Good luck," he tells me quietly as we shake hands.

"You too, ice-boy."

"If you're ever in Tir Na Nog, say hi to Mab for me," Ash adds.

"Yeah, I'll be sure to do that. See you around, ice-boy," I say, laughing and shaking my head as I back away across the bridge, raising my hand in a final salute before I let the glamour shimmering all around me turn me into my raven form. With a raucous cry, I explode into the sky, glancing down one last time at where Ashallayn'darkmyr Tallyn, former prince of Winter and now the only pureblood faery with a human soul and Meghan's soon-to-be husband, stands at the edge of the Iron Kingdom, watching me. An expression that would have seemed alien back in the day (when directed at me, at least), but is now becoming more frequent, is spread across his face. He's smiling.

I turn my gaze into the sky, the familiar ache of loss and longing burning inside my chest, not knowing exactly where I'm headed. I am, however, sure of one thing. Wherever this place is, Meghan and Ash will not be in it.


	2. Chapter 2: Hazing

_Willow _

"Are you sure this is the right way?" I whisper as quietly as I can, leaning close to Renn's ear so _something _won't overhear us. My boyfriend turns, a slight smile on his lips, and my stomach flutters briefly with something besides apprehension. He doesn't speak, but simply nods and takes my hand in reassurance that we're going the right way, his thumb tracing tingly patterns there as we walk through the Briars on our way to attempt something more dangerous than either of us fully comprehend. I shiver involuntarily, pulling my ragged sweater closer around me, as I contemplate how this could end.

Renn feels my hesitation and gives a sigh, brushing his shaggy, light brown hair out of his eyes. I remind myself to sit him down and cut it soon, if we ever come back from this.

"Willow, don't be a wuss," he says, smiling to soften his words. "We'll be fine. If the rest of those numbskulls can survive the hazing, we can too."

"Oh, I'm not worried about the dragon," I laugh harshly. "It's Leanansidhe. What will she do to us if we don't succeed? I heard that Kimi and Nelson were almost killed when they only came back with one egg—and their friend Warren really _was _killed, just for a different reason. It was only because she had more important things to think about at the time that they survived. We've all heard the horror stories, Renn. You can't pretend you aren't at least a little afraid, too."

"Kimi and Nelson are idiots," Renn replies dismissively, with a roll of his hazel eyes. "Come on, babe. We've survived for years all by ourselves, without anyone to help us out or feed us or anything. If you're really that scared, we can just ditch, go back to the streets. Who needs Leanansidhe or her rotten mansion?"

"It was your idea to come here in the first place," I remind him. "It's too hard to survive as faery half-breeds out in the mortal world. That's why they all come to Leanansidhe, because they have nowhere else to go. And neither do we."

"We can always live in the NeverNever," he says, but I know he doesn't really mean it. As reckless as Renn is, he wouldn't be stupid enough to try to visit one of the faery courts. Half breeds are unwelcome there, especially when they're the children of the sidhe, like we are. Renn and I each have one fairy parent, and both are nobles; his are from the Winter court and mine are from Summer. That difference might matter if we were pureblood, but as it is, no one cares. Renn is the only other half-sidhe I know. Most of our fellow half-breeds, at least the ones I've met, are far stranger. There are the half-phouka's, who have either furry ears or goat horns, for instance. I count myself lucky that Renn and I met before we came to Leanansidhe's, because otherwise, I might have a lot of competition for him. Cute boyfriends with pointy ears are vastly preferable to those with green skin or worse, and far harder to come by. But Renn is also more than that to me: he's my best friend, my protector, the closest I have to family. What will I do if, somehow, he doesn't return from this?

Renn again senses doubt in my expression, so he stops walking altogether and pulls me into a comforting hug, a risky move in a place where even the slightest delay could result in death. I stiffen fearfully, and he laughs at me.

"Salix'alba," he murmurs, invoking my True Name (don't ask me how I found that one out; the price wasn't an easy one to pay, but Renn helped me) as he pulls back to look me in the eye. "You aren't _scared, _are you?"

"Of course not!" I protest, and he raises a disbelieving brow. "Okay, fine, maybe a little. And if you had any sense, you would be, too. I'm not worried about me, I'm worried about you, idiot."

"Me?" Renn grins. "Whatever for?"

"Because you wouldn't know caution if it bit you in the butt," I reply with a toss of my hair.

"So I'm a little reckless," he shrugs, still with that laughing expression, and tugs me along with him, deeper into the Briars. "Shoot me."

"I would if I thought it would make you a little more wary," I mutter, too low for him to hear.

I try not to be, but I'm hyperaware of each sound that comes from the depths of the thorns surrounding us, and as we get farther away from the trod, they become increasingly frequent and strange. There are the normal ones, little rustles in the branches overhead, and those don't scare me so much, but soon we start hearing other things: high-pitched, muffled little shrieks and cries, followed by snapping and crunching, like something being eaten alive, and a noise that sounds like far-off singing, only vastly more haunting and sinister, mixed in with a mechanical, tinkling music that somehow makes me want to fall asleep. I fight the feeling, knowing what could happen if I let down my guard for an instant. The everpresent feeling of being watched also intensifies, and I can almost imagine that I see eyes in the darkness ahead. Or perhaps the Briars themselves are watching us, for as anyone familiar with this part of Faery can tell you, they're definitely alive.

When we're almost to our destination, I begin to hear heavy breathing, snorting and snuffling, like something very large sleeping.

"Is that the dragon?" I ask Renn, trying not to let my voice tremble. He notices anyway, and rolls his eyes again as he answers.

"Yeah. Try not to wake it up."

"How are we supposed to get its eggs _without _waking it up?" I whisper loudly, prompting my boyfriend to clap a hand over my mouth. I immediately lick it and he yanks it back, wiping his hand off on his ratty T shirt.

"Gross, Willow," he huffs.

"Don't give me that. My tongue's been in your _mouth_ before, so it really shouldn't gross you out to have it on your hand."

"That's different," he grimaces, blushing furiously.

"You didn't answer my question," I remind him. "How are we supposed to steal the dragon's eggs without waking it up?"

Renn gets that gleam in his eye, the one that I've seen enough of by now to be wary of. "We aren't," he smirks.

"What do you mean, we aren't?" I demand.

"I mean that it's impossible to get a dragon's eggs without waking it."

"So what, we just run really fast?" I sigh, a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. "Figures."

"Come on, Salix'alba," Renn laughs, yanking on my hand. "Let's go get those eggs."

"Enough with the True Name, you'll wear it out," I mumble, but I follow him anyway. I'd probably follow Renn to the End of the World if he asked me, not that I'd tell him that. Best to let him think he has to persuade me of things before I'll do them.

"Be very quiet," Renn breathes, sweeping me behind his back as we round the corner to the dragon's nest. I can just barely see the edge of its back and one claw peeking out from behind the wall of thorns separating the nest from the main tunnel, its shiny black scales rising and falling in a regular rhythm. "I'm going to scope it out, find out where the eggs are, then I'll come back and tell you. We'll each grab one, and then run like the devil's chasing us."

"Because he practically is," I finish, eyeing those wicked talons.

One side of Renn's mouth quirks up in a half-smile and, unexpectedly, he leans forward and gives me what's meant to be a brief peck on the lips, but I grab the front of his shirt and yank him towards me, deepening the kiss.

"Be careful," I say breathlessly as we break apart. "For once in your life, Renn, please."

"I'll be fine," he says gently. "Love you, Willow."

"Love you," I whisper back roughly, worry making my stomach churn, and let him go. With one last glance at me over his shoulder, betraying the fact that he truly is more afraid than he lets on, Renn moves stealthily around the corner and into the dragon's lair.

For a few moments, all is well. I can see him through the cracks in the vines, quiet and graceful as he searches for the eggs. Then a noise begins from _behind _me, back down the tunnel, a buzzing sound that gets louder and louder. Too loud.

"Renn, run!" I cry urgently, but it's too late. At the same moment as Renn turns to flee the lair, the dragon's evil yellow eye opens, and it sees him. With a roar of rage, the beast turns on the intruder in its nest, spreading its wings wide in a show of intimidation before taking a swipe at him. Renn backpedals, stumbling away from the reach of its murderous claws, flinging out a hand and sending a shower of ice daggers hurtle towards the dragon's muzzle, where they shatter uselessly against its thick scales.

I can't think, only know I have to help him, so I crouch down, burying one of my hands deep within the soft ground, and summon my glamour, willing vines to grow out of the earth beneath the dragon's feet and wrap themselves around it. Thick creepers, as big around as my wrist, push their way from the ground like living ropes, snaking around the dragon's ankles, but they do no more to hinder it than if they had been mere blades of grass. It moves in on Renn, towering over him as it rears back its head, and I lurch around the corner, yelling hoarsely, desperate to distract it before it can send a jet of flame to engulf him.

It works; the dragon's head whips around and it turns to face me. For a few exhilarated moments I think that I've succeeded in saving Renn, not thinking about the danger I've now put myself in, then its gigantic foot comes down on his chest. Renn twitches spasmodically, face twisted in pain, as the beast's weight crushes his ribcage, his blood spurting out between its enormous toes.

My heart stops. Everything seems to happen in slow motion, a terrified scream rising inside me even as I try to convince myself that what I'm seeing can't be real. Renn's eyes find mine and I see his lips form my name—my True Name, the one only he calls me by—then the dragon's claws come down a second time and he goes limp underneath it, my view of him blocked by a wall of black scales.


End file.
